Gujarat ATS busts racket supplying fake Indian documents to Bangladeshis; councillors’ letterheads misused

In a major crackdown on illegal infiltration and document racketeering networks, the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has busted an elaborate operation facilitating Bangladeshi nationals in acquiring forged Indian documents, including passports, Aadhaar cards, and voter IDs. The accused allegedly misused the official letterheads of political leaders from both the BJP and Congress to lend authenticity to the forged papers.

The ATS arrested Rana Sarkar alias Mohammad Deedarul Alam, a Bangladeshi national, and Shoaib Mohammad Qureshi, an Indian agent from Rajasthan, in Ahmedabad. The two were reportedly at the heart of the racket, which operated through Sarkar's shop, 'VIP Mobile and Money Transfer,' located under his residence in Narol's Baghe Kausar area.

Investigations revealed that Sarkar, originally from Kishoreganj district in Bangladesh, illegally entered India in 2012 via Dinhata and subsequently travelled through Siliguri, Howrah, Tamil Nadu, Bangalore, and Mumbai before settling in Ahmedabad in 2015. By 2017, he had managed to procure an Indian passport using forged documents and began offering services to Bangladeshi nationals seeking illegal Indian documentation. His associate, Shoaib Qureshi, had been running 'Al Qureshi Enterprises’, an online documentation service, since 2015.

Searches at Sarkar's premises led to the seizure of a trove of forged documents, including Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, voter ID cards, Indian passports, and documents linked to the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Additionally, ATS officials uncovered 13 forged identity documents allegedly prepared for Bangladeshi nationals at the behest of Robul Islam, believed to be currently absconding in South Korea.

Further raids at Qureshi's premises near the Narol Maniyar petrol pump uncovered 22 additional fake certificates, over 300 forged identity documents such as birth certificates, and digital evidence from computers and laptops. Investigators also found that the network had already facilitated Indian passports for 17 Bangladeshi nationals, with applications pending for nine more.

The ATS disclosed that the accused misused the letterheads of political figures, including Congress leader and AMC opposition leader Shehzad Khan Pathan, councillor Geeta Solanki, and former councillor Kamaruddin. According to officials, four forged documents were prepared using Pathan's letterhead, 15 on Solanki’s, and two on Kamaruddin’s.

The ATS has booked the accused under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita(BNS), Passport Act, and the Foreigners Act, 1946. While Sarkar and Qureshi are in custody, efforts are underway to trace and apprehend Robul Islam.

ATS sources added that councillors whose letterheads were used would also be questioned as part of the broader investigation.